Early in the offseason the Angels were shopping Ervin Santana (who they eventually traded) and Dan Haren (whose option they eventually declined) because they wanted to clear payroll space to re-sign Zack Greinke, making that the focus of their winter.

Unfortunately for the Angels once Greinke actually hit the open market and the offers started rolling in they found his price tag was above their means, so now they’ve dropped out of the running for Greinke and turned to Joe Blanton as a much cheaper fallback option.

“We’re prepared to move on from Zack,” general manager Jerry Dipoto said, via Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times. “Sometimes the smartest thing you can do is make practical decisions. Nobody operates without a ceiling.”

While true, that’s quite a change from last offseason when the Angels broke the bank to sign Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson for a combined $320 million. And that’s also quite different than the Dodgers’ current approach to spending, which seemingly is without a ceiling.